San Francisco rent prices down slightly

A long, hot summer has given way to a slightly cooler fall in San Francisco. Not in terms of weather but when it comes to the rental market. At least according to Zumper, which released its quarterly rent map displaying the median price of a single-bedroom apartment in San Francisco neighborhoods.

The usual caveat still applies: These figures only represent what homes rent for on Zumper, which may or may not reflect average prices across other platforms or the city in general.

No surprises here: Zumper says that the priciest neighborhoods in the city are once again South Beach ($3,700/month), SoMa ($3,600/month), and the Financial District ($3,550/month).

A comparison to the same Zumper map from this time last year reveals that prices in each of the hot neighborhoods crept down from 2016.

In fact, prices are down year over year in almost every neighborhood. Here’s a look at the biggest drops, along with the new median number for each:

• Russian Hill: -$400 ($3,400)
• Pac Heights: -$355 ($3,495)
• Mission Bay/Dogpatch: -$355 ($3,475)
• The Haight: -$250 ($3,350)
• The Castro: -$250 ($3,500)
• Potrero Hill: -$250 ($3,400)
• SoMa: -$200 ($3,800/month)
• FiDi: -$200 ($3,550/month)
• South Beach: -$160 ($3,700/month)

Note that Zumper’s median figures tend to swing wide year over year compared to competitors; it’s not surprising to see a big change from last year’s map.

The big catch: Prices are up in a few of SF’s affordable neighborhoods, like the Tenderloin (then $2,300/month, now $2,390), Bayview (then $2,525, now $2,700), and most notably and alarmingly, Excelsior (then $1,990, now $2,450).

• SF Fall Rent Map, 2017 [Zumper]
• SF Fall Rent Map, 2016 [Zumper]